December 5, 08:25 AM • 11408 viewsDecember 4, 02:10 PM • 25180 viewsDonald Trump officially took office as President of the United States on January 20, 2025. The leaders of Canada, the United Kingdom, the EU, NATO, and Finland have sent congratulations and expressed their willingness to cooperate.
Today is the inauguration of Donald Trump, after which he plans to sign about 100 executive orders. The EU is preparing for potential changes in trade, climate policy, and its position on Ukraine.
The World Economic Forum is taking place in Davos on January 20-24 with the theme “Cooperation for the Intelligent Age. ” Zelenskyy will deliver a special speech on January 21. The event will be attended by 60 world leaders.
The President of Ukraine will take part in the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 21. The event will also be attended by Donald Trump, Ursula von der Leyen and other world leaders.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that the creation of a separate European defense alliance would require 8-10% of GDP and 15-20 years. Instead, he promised to deepen cooperation between NATO and the EU.
Croatia is holding the second round of presidential elections, with incumbent President Zoran Milanovic leading the pack. In the first round, he received 49.1% of the vote against 19.35% for his opponent Dragan Primorc.
Ursula von der Leyen will not be able to attend the inaugural meeting due to Poland's presidency of the EU Council. The European Commission meeting in Gdansk, scheduled for January 9-10, will be postponed to another date.
On January 3, farmers will protest in Warsaw under the slogan “5 x STOP” against the EU and Ursula von der Leyen's policies. The participants are opposed to the Green Deal, imports from Ukraine and other EU initiatives.
The government plans to cover the 2025 budget deficit with $36. 9 billion in external borrowings. The EU, IMF, and the US will be the main donors, and Ukraine's economy may grow by 4.3%.
Slovak Prime Minister Fico writes a letter to the EU leadership regarding Ukraine's termination of Russian gas transit after 2024.
Zoran Milanovic received almost half of the votes in the first round of the Croatian presidential election. The second round will be held on January 12, as no candidate has gained an absolute majority.
The government plans to attract more than $38 billion in foreign aid to cover non-military budget expenditures. In 2023, direct budget support from international partners amounted to about $41 billion.
The Serbian president announces that the Slovak prime minister is scheduled to visit Moscow over the gas issue. Slovakia is looking for a solution after Ukraine announced that it would stop transiting Russian gas from January 1, 2025.
Viktor Orban told EU leaders that he was not ready to extend sanctions against Russia until after Trump's inauguration in the United States. At the EU summit, the Hungarian prime minister called on Europeans to “show strategic patience.
The NBU has set the official hryvnia exchange rate at 41. 89 UAH/USD, which is 2 kopecks lower than the previous figure. On the interbank market, the dollar is trading at UAH 41.85-41.87, the euro at UAH 43.51-43.52.
Slovakia's Defense Minister Robert Kaliniak called it “unthinkable” to increase defense spending to 3% of GDP. The country plans to remain at 2% of GDP, despite NATO's calls for increased spending due to the threat from Russia.
Zelenskyy meets with Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels to discuss Ukraine's accession to the EU. The parties discussed new macro-financial assistance and the use of frozen Russian assets.
Slovakia is negotiating alternative solutions for gas transit through Ukraine after the current agreement expires. Gas prices in Europe are declining amid optimistic expectations for 2024 supplies.
The President of the European Commission plans to ask EU leaders to increase aid to repair and modernize Ukraine's energy system. The EU has already provided significant support, but more needs to be done because of the capacity shortage.
Ursula von der Leyen announced the start of the loan repayment within the G7 commitment from January. The EU will provide Ukraine with €13 billion from the Fund and more than €18 billion from frozen Russian assets.
Ursula von der Leyen announced the possibility of opening a basic cluster of negotiations on Ukraine's EU membership at the beginning of 2025. Other clusters are planned to be considered during the same year.
The Slovak prime minister will discuss alternative ways of supplying gas through Ukraine with the head of the European Commission.
Ursula von der Leyen confirmed the preparation of the 16th package of sanctions against Russia. The previous sanctions have already led to a fall in the ruble and an increase in inflation in some sectors of the Russian economy by up to 70%.
Gas companies from four EU countries warned the European Commission of the risks of stopping gas transit through Ukraine. Slovakia is negotiating with Gazprom, but the EC refuses to participate in the discussion.
The European Commission has launched an official investigation against TikTok for violating the law on digital services during the Romanian elections. The platform is suspected of promoting a pro-Russian candidate through fake accounts.
The European Commission will provide funding to Estonia, Norway, Finland, Poland and Latvia to protect their borders from drones. The decision was announced by Ursula von der Leyen after a conversation with the Finnish Prime Minister.
George Maloney is recognized as the most powerful person in Europe by Politico. Ursula von der Leyen, Friedrich Merz, and Mark Rutte topped other categories of the ranking.
The survey showed a significant increase in Ukrainians' trust in Donald Trump - from 10. 1% to 44.6%. The most trusted foreign leaders are Ursula von der Leyen and Andrzej Duda, with 65% each.
Ursula von der Leyen plans to sign a large-scale trade agreement between the EU and MERCOSUR in Montevideo. The agreement will create a market of 700 million consumers, although France and Poland oppose it.
The European Union is lowering the protected status of wolves from "strictly protected" to "protected". The amendments will take effect in March 2025, unless there are significant objections from the Council of Europe member states.
